San Mateo County, California
|subdivision_type1 = State |subdivision_name1 = | subdivision_type2 = Region/Metro area | subdivision_name2 = San Francisco Bay Area | seat_type = County seat | seat = Redwood City | parts_type = Largest city | parts = Daly City | area_total_sq_mi = 741.01 | area_land_sq_mi = 449.07 | area_water_sq_mi = 291.95 | elevation_max_footnotes = | elevation_max_ft = | elevation_min_footnotes = | elevation_min_ft = | population_as_of = 2010 | population_total = 718451 | population_density_sq_mi = auto | established_title = Incorporated | established_date = 1856 | leader_title = | leader_name = | leader_title1 = | leader_name1 = | timezone = Pacific Standard Time | utc_offset = -8 | timezone_DST = Pacific Daylight Time | utc_offset_DST = -7 | postal_code_type = | postal_code = | area_code = | image_map = Map of California highlighting San Mateo County.svg | mapsize = 200px | map_caption = Location in the state of California | image_map1 = Map of USA CA.svg | mapsize1 = 200px | map_caption1 = California's location in the United States | website = www.co.sanmateo.ca.us | footnotes = }} San Mateo County ( ; Spanish for "Saint Matthew") is a county located in the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California. It covers most of the San Francisco Peninsula just south of San Francisco, and north of Santa Clara County. San Francisco International Airport is located at the northern end of the county, and Silicon Valley begins at the southern end. As of 2010 the population was 718,451. The county seat is Redwood City. It is strongly Democratic and ethnically diverse. The county's built-up areas are mostly suburban with some areas being very urban, and are home to several corporate campuses. History San Mateo County was formed from parts of San Francisco County and Santa Cruz County in 1856. The county bears the Spanish name for Saint Matthew. As a place name, San Mateo appears as early as 1776 and several local geographic features were also designated San Mateo on early maps including variously: a settlement, an arroyo, a headland jutting into the Pacific (Point Montara), and a large land holding (Rancho San Mateo). Until about 1850, the name appeared as San Matheo. Geography According to the 2000 census, the county has a total area of , of which (or 60.60%) is land and (or 39.40%) is water. A number of bayside watercourses drain the eastern part of the county including San Bruno Creek and Colma Creek. Streams draining the western county include Frenchmans Creek, Pilarcitos Creek, Naples Creek, Arroyo de en Medio, and Denniston Creek. Incorporated cities Unincorporated communities Adjacent counties *San Francisco County, California north *Alameda County, California east, border is entirely in San Francisco Bay *Santa Clara County, California southeast *Santa Cruz County, California south National protected areas * Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge (part) * Golden Gate National Recreation Area (part) Transportation infrastructure Major highways * Interstate 280 (Junipero Serra Freeway) * Interstate 380 (Kopp Freeway) * U.S. Route 101 (Bayshore Freeway) * State Route 1 (Cabrillo Highway) * State Route 35 (Skyline Boulevard) * State Route 82 (El Camino Real) * State Route 84 (Woodside Road, Dumbarton Bridge) * State Route 92 (J. Arthur Younger Freeway, San Mateo Bridge) Public transportation SamTrans (San Mateo County Transit District) provides local bus service within San Mateo County. Local and commuter bus routes also operate into San Francisco. Caltrain, the commuter rail system, traverses the county from north to south, running alongside the Highway 101 corridor for most of the way. Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) trains serve San Francisco International Airport and the northern portion of the county, terminating at Millbrae. Caltrain, BART, and SamTrans converge at the Millbrae Intermodal station. Airports San Francisco International Airport is geographically located in San Mateo County, but it is owned by the City and County of San Francisco. San Mateo County does own two general aviation airports: Half Moon Bay Airport and San Carlos Airport. Marine transport The only deepwater port in South San Francisco Bay is the Port of Redwood City, situated along Redwood Creek, originally created as a lumber embarcadero in 1850. Demographics 2010 |} The 2010 United States Census reported that San Mateo County had a population of 718,451. The racial makeup of San Mateo County was 383,535 (53.4%) White, 20,436 (2.8%) African American, 3,306 (0.5%) Native American, 178,118 (24.8%) Asian, 10,317 (1.4%) Pacific Islander, 84,529 (11.8%) from other races, and 38,210 (5.3%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 182,502 persons (25.4%). 2000 As of the census of 2009, there were 714,936 people, 258,648 households, and 174,582 families residing in the county. The population density was 2,753/sq mi (825/km²). There were 284,471 housing units at an average density of 789/sq mi (432/km²). 7.4% were of Italian, 7.1% Irish, 7.0% German and 5.3% English ancestry according to Census 2000. 46.9% spoke English, 28.4% Spanish, 6.2% Tagalog, 4.0% Chinese or Mandarin and 1.1% Cantonese, and other language 4.2%, as their first language from estimate census 2009. There were 258,648 households out of which 30% had children under the age of 18, 48.6% were married couples living together, 14.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.7% were non-families. 31.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.79 and the average family size was 4.44. In the county, the population was spread out with 28.6% under the age of 18, 15.9% from 18 to 24, 25.8% from 25 to 44, 21% from 45 to 64, and 9.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 97.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.1 males. The median income for a household in the county was $69,306, and the median income for a family was $77,737. Males had a median income of $48,342 versus $45,383 for females. The per capita income for the county was $36,045. About 6.42% of families and 9.51% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.01% of those under age 18 and 8.52% of those age 65 or over. Politics , facing northwest]] San Mateo County has a five-member Board of Supervisors, representing five geographic districts, but elected at-large. The California Secretary of State, as of April 2008, reports that San Mateo County has 357,514 registered voters. Of those voters registered, 179,994 (50.4%) are registered Democratic, 82,189 (23.0%) are registered Republican, 13,648 (3.8%) are registered with other political parties, and 81,683 (22.8%) declined to state a political party preference. With the exceptions of Atherton, Hillsborough, and Woodside, every city, town, and the unincorporated areas of San Mateo County has more registered Democrats than Republicans. San Mateo is a strongly Democratic county in presidential and congressional elections. The last Republican to win a majority in the county was Ronald Reagan in 1984. San Mateo is part of California's 12th and 14th congressional districts, held by Democrats Jackie Speier and Anna Eshoo, respectively. In the State Assembly, San Mateo is in the 12th, 19th, and 21st districts, which are held by Democrats Fiona Ma, Jerry Hill, and Rich Gordon, respectively. In the State Senate, San Mateo is in the 8th and 11th districts, which are held by Democrats Leland Yee and Joe Simitian, respectively. On Nov. 4, 2008 San Mateo County voted 61.8 % against Proposition 8, which amended the California Constitution to ban same-sex marriages. Environmental features San Mateo County straddles the San Francisco Peninsula, with the Santa Cruz Mountains running its entire length. The county encompasses a variety of habitats including estuarine, marine, oak woodland, redwood forest, coastal scrub and oak savannah. There are numerous species of wildlife present, especially along the San Francisco Bay estuarine shoreline, San Bruno Mountain, Fitzgerald Marine Reserve and the forests on the Montara Mountain block. Several creeks discharge to the San Francisco Bay including San Mateo Creek and Laurel Creek and several coastal streams discharge to the Pacific Ocean such as Frenchmans Creek and San Vicente Creek. The county is home to several endangered species including the San Francisco garter snake and the San Bruno elfin butterfly, both of which are endemic to San Mateo County. The endangered California clapper rail is also found on the shores of San Francisco Bay, in the cities of Belmont and San Mateo. The endangered wildflower Hickman's potentilla is found near the Pacific Ocean on the lower slopes of Montara Mountain. The endangered wildflowers White-rayed pentachaeta, Pentachaeta bellidiflora, San Mateo Woolly Sunflower, Eriophyllum latilobum, Marin Dwarf Flax, Hesperolinon congestum and the San Mateo Thornmint, Acanthomintha duttonii, are found in the vicinity of the Crystal Springs Reservoir. Education The people of San Mateo county may use the services of the Peninsula Library System and its dozens of branches, bookmobile and Library-a-Go-Go machine at the Millbrae BART/Caltrain station. The county is broken up into several public school districts in addition to the local Catholic diocese and many other private parochial and secular schools. Some students in San Mateo County's public schools attend outdoor education in La Honda. San Mateo Outdoor Education is a residential school that teaches major concepts of ecology via exploration of forest, pond, garden, tidepool, wetland, and sandy shore habitats. The center's mascot is the banana slug, a large yellow gastropod. The school uses songs from the famous Banana Slug String Band. Economy Prior to its dissolution, Pacific Air Lines had its corporate headquarters on the grounds of San Francisco International Airport in an unincorporated area in San Mateo County.Flight International. April 2, 1964. 523. Prior to its dissolution, Hughes Airwest had its headquarters on the grounds of San Francisco International."World Airline Directory." Flight International. April 28, 1979. 1379. Notable structures There are a number of well known structures within San Mateo County: * Carolands Mansion, Hillsborough * Cow Palace, Daly City * Crocker Mansion, Hillsborough * Crystal Springs Reservoir, unincorporated central part of county * CuriOdyssey, San Mateo * Dakin Building, Brisbane * Filoli Mansion, Woodside * Notre Dame de Namur University, Belmont, which incorporates Ralston Hall * Pigeon Point Lighthouse, Pescadero * Point Montara Lighthouse, Montara * Pulgas Water Temple, Woodside * Sanchez Adobe, Pacifica * San Francisco International Airport * Stanford Linear Accelerator Center, Menlo Park * Kohl Mansion, Burlingame County trails See this county page for trail descriptions. * Alpine Trail * Bog Trail * Cañada Trail * Crystal Springs Trail * Edgewood Trail * Ralston Trail * San Andreas Trail * Sand Hill Trail * Sawyer Camp Trail * Skyline Trail * Sheep Camp Trail * Sweeney Ridge Trail * Hiking trails in San Mateo County County parks * Coyote Point Recreation Area * Coyote Point Marina * Crystal Springs * Edgewood Park and Natural Reserve * Fitzgerald Marine Reserve * Flood Park (County) * Heritage Grove * Huddart Park * Junipero Serra County Park * San Mateo County Memorial Park * Pescadero Creek Park * Russian Ridge Open Space Preserve * Sam MacDonald Park * San Bruno Mountain (County Park) * San Mateo Fishing Pier * San Mateo County Memorial Park * San Pedro Valley County Park * Sanchez Adobe * Woodside Store * Wunderlich Park – New Source: http://www.sanmateocountyparks.org/ County Parks: http://www.co.sanmateo.ca.us/portal/site/parks State parks * Año Nuevo State Park * Butano State Park * Castle Rock State Park * Heritage Grove * Portola Redwoods State Park * Quarry Park * Burleigh H. Murray Ranch * Pigeon Point Light Station Historic State Park * Point Montara Light Station State Park * Portola Redwoods State Park * San Bruno Mountain State Park State beaches * Año Nuevo State Reserve * Bean Hollow State Beach * Big Basin State Beach * Gray Whale Cove State Beach * Half Moon Bay State Beach * Montara State Beach * Pacifica State Beach * Pebble Beach * Pescadero State Beach * Pomponio State Beach * San Gregorio State Beach * Thornton State Beach Source: http://www.parks.ca.gov/parkindex/default.asp?tab=3 State Parks, Choose San Mateo See also *List of school districts in San Mateo County, California *List of California Historical Landmarks in San Mateo County, California * List of California public officials charged with crimes, San Mateo County *National Register of Historic Places listings in San Mateo County, California *Peninsula Humane Society *Seaport Centre *Telephone Area code 650 *Leo J. Ryan Memorial Park *Leo J. Ryan Federal Building *Silicon Valley References External links *County of San Mateo Official Website *Visitors Guide from the Visitors Bureau *San Mateo County Library – 12 branches throughout the County and a bookmobile *Peninsula Library System – serving all of San Mateo County *Superior Court Records *SamCERA (San Mateo County Employees' Retirement Association *Brisbane Baylands Project Category:San Mateo County, California Category:Counties in the San Francisco Bay Area Category:Counties of California